EL PASO - Robert "Bob" Jones, the former president of the National Center for the Employment of the Disabled who was recognized for his business acumen in 2005, was arrested Tuesday by the FBI along with two others on charges related to embezzlement of millions of dollars from government programs, according to a 37-count indictment.

Jones, 63, who was named Entrepreneur of the Year by the El Paso Chamber of Commerce, was indicted on various charges, including conspiracy to commit theft or embezzlement of government program funds, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and embezzlement of government program funds, according to the indictment.

Also arrested were former NCED chief operations officer Ernesto "Ernie" Lopez, 46, and former NCED board member Patrick Woods, 51.

All three, through paperwork, pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court. Late Tuesday, they remained in the El Paso County Jail.

The three men become the second, third and fourth persons indicted in the ongoing public corruption case that began at NCED several years ago and has since spread to the county, school districts, several businesses, El Paso Community College, and lawyers and community leaders.

Nine others have pleaded guilty to various charges in the corruption case, and Sal Mena Jr., a former El Paso Independent School District trustee, was indicted on bribery charges in August. He has pleaded not guilty and is out on bond.

The charges filed against Jones, Lopez and Woods are not related to any of the other guilty pleas or to any elected official.

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The public corruption case, according to federal court documents, involves 12 separate investigations with 80 persons of interest.

The charges against Jones, Lopez and Woods are related to an investigation that began at NCED when it was reported that officials at the center were hiring non-disabled employees to work on federal contracts that were set aside to provide jobs for people who are disabled.

According to the indictment, "NCED never employed sufficient numbers of blind or severely disabled workers to qualify for ... contracts."

The El Paso Times began reporting on allegations about the work force and work performed by the company in late 2005.

The indictment further alleges that the defendants stole or embezzled a minimum of $5,000 from NCED, an organization that received at least $10,000 in federal government program money in each year charged and, without authorization of the NCED board of directors, directed the money for the use of themselves or others.

Under the Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act, NCED received no-bid contracts to make military uniforms and reported annual federal contracts of up to $235 million.

Jones' lawyer, Joe Spencer, said that neither he nor his client was surprised by the indictment and that they were prepared to fight.

"We had heard rumors that indictments might come down before the election," Spencer said.

The indictment states that if Jones is found guilty, he should forfeit almost $59 million in money and assets.

Woods' lawyer, Jim Darnell, said Woods would be able to prove he is innocent.

"He will be vindicated when this all comes out in the wash," Darnell said.

And Mary Stillinger, who fought for and won the right to defend Lopez, said the investigation had unjustly been hanging over Lopez's reputation for a long time.

"He finally gets a chance to defend himself," Stillinger said.

Lopez was indicted on 17 different charges, including conspiracy to make false statements and defraud the United States. Woods is charged with seven counts of embezzlement, fraud and conspiracy to make false statements to a federally insured financial institution to obtain credit.

All three appeared Tuesday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Richard Mesa and had their bonds set.

Jones' bond was set at $500,000.

Jones, who was known for his philanthropy in the community, was named CEO of NCED in 1994 and built the nonprofit from a small company. He increased the work force from 50 employees to 4,000 under the Javits-Wagner-O'Day program, which was created to employ people with disabilities.

In March 2006, Jones resigned after a federal investigation found that the company, one of El Paso's last remaining major garment manufacturers, violated labor requirements for disabled workers on federal contracts.